This one requires picking up the phone to furiously check email and social media sites — before rolling out of bed.

If there is time for breakfast, there also is time to open up the paper, fire up the tablet or turn on the news in search of more answers. The morning drive then lends an opportunity to call a colleague or confidant to discuss a deal that went down.

So is this the routine of a CEO, politician or someone with a high-profile position? Perhaps, but it also describes the daily grind of the modern-day sports fan, whose job is never done.

Not long ago, watching television and paying attention to headlines and box scores could inform fans.

Because of technology, narratives change by the minute (see: NFL lockout) and are no longer limited to neatly packaged, daily updates. The advent of advanced statistics has provided endless ways to make arguments.

This growing wealth of information would presumably make life easier.

"It may actually be worse because you may not be able to process any of it very well," L.J. Shrum, professor and marketing department chair at UTSA, said about an abundance of information.

Spurs guard Tony Parker tweeted a photo of himself last month cruising around a French beach by way of jetpack. For idealists who believe their favorite player spends every waking moment striving for a ring, Parker wasn't exactly trying to improve his vertical jump, not to mention keeping himself out of potential harm's way.

Then again, it's hard to question what Parker does during an offseason. He's a three-time NBA champion who helped the Spurs to the top seed in the Western Conference last season.

Still, the nonstop probing of athletes can make it tough even for the most loyal follower to defend them. Shrum sees a possible future "where we just have no more heroes."

"The scrutiny has always been there, but now there's the ability to really kind of dig down," said Shrum, who noted that the constant reporting about Tiger Woods' extra-marital affairs made it more tangible — even "creepy" — than a traditional news story.

LeBron James hasn't escaped criticism since the "The Decision" last summer, yet his products remained hot long after the burning of his Cavaliers jerseys. The Heat star had the top-selling basketball shoe in November, according to the sporting goods industry website SportsOneSource, and NBCSports.com reported that James had the No. 1 selling jersey for 2010-11.

Matt Powell, an analyst for SportsOneSource, doesn't see a connection between an athlete's popularity and how well his shoe sells. "People are buying these shoes for fashion," he said.

It's not like James committed a crime by switching teams anyway.

Michael Vick is a different story, though spending 18 months in prison on dogfighting charges hasn't kept the Eagles quarterback from replenishing his portfolio of endorsement deals. He only lost one recently after also signing with that product's competitor, according to Bloomberg News.

In general, do companies feel like consumers will willingly support imperfect pitchmen?

"Just Deal With It." For a sports fan these days, that's part of the job description.

NUMBERS GAME

Here are some basic and useful advanced stats, as suggested by Matt Scribbins, who writes on the subject for ESPN.com:

BASKETBALL

Offensive/defensive efficiency: Since not everyone plays at the same pace, points per game and points allowed per game are flawed ways to compare teams. Points scored or allowed per 100 possessions helps equal things out.

BASEBALL

Fielding Independent Pitching: This ERA-like figure (FIP) eliminates factors out of pitchers' control — defense, official scoring decisions — and rates them on the things they can — strikeouts, walks, home runs.

ALL TEAM SPORTS

Pythagorean wins: Takes a team's scoring differential and converts it into a predicted win-loss record. Comparing it to the actual record can give an idea whether a club is overachieving or underachieving. Scoring differential has become a popular way to predict playoff success in basketball, but it's by no means perfect. The Spurs, who ranked fourth in that category last season, were ousted in the first round.